posted at 10:07 am on September 7, 2007 by Allahpundit

U.S. authorities now say they have a transcript which they say is aimed at potential suicide bombers who he urges to carry out missions against the West.

Richard Clarke says he thinks the beard looks fake. The possibility of Osama shaving his beard to disguise himself was floated after 9/11; the FBI or CIA even produced an artist’s rendering of what he might look like without one but naturally I can’t find it anywhere online. Clarke thinks shaving would actually be counterproductive in the Pakistani tribal areas since it would make him stand out, not blend in, raising the slender possibility that he’s decamped to some other region.

Compare for yourself. The area at the corners of his mouth where the mustache meets the beard does seem oddly thinner now than it was in 2004.

Update: Not the one I’m thinking of, but this flier comes courtesy of a reader from the Defense Department.

Update: Many thanks to the reader who dug this up somewhere and sent it in. This is the one I’m thinking of.

Update:I can’t wait. Remember, it’s an absolute article of faith on the left that Bin Laden wants us in Iraq, has always wanted us in Iraq, and will continue to want us in Iraq to give him a casus belli with which to recruit.

Several intelligence agencies were looking at the 25-minute video — the first new images of the terror leader in nearly three years.

The tape contains no specific threat, senior U.S. intelligence officials told NBC News’ Robert Windrem. Officials spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue…

Officials said bin Laden criticized Democrats in Congress in the video for being unable to stop the war in Iraq. The al-Qaida leader also urged young Muslims to carry out suicide bombings against the West — a piece of advice he offers in most tapes…

Soon after Washington announced it had the video, all the Islamic militant Web sites that usually carry statements from al-Qaida went down and were inaccessible, in an unprecedented shutdown.

The reason for the shutdown was not immediately known. Evan Kohlmann, an NBC News terrorism expert, said he suspected it was the work of al-Qaida itself, trying to find how the video leaked to U.S. officials.

Predictable leftist spin to come: Osama’s afraid we’re going to withdraw and is trying to bait us into staying via reverse psychology. In fact, given the inhospitability of Anbar, he may be looking for an excuse to get out himself and redeploy the new recruits into hitting Musharraf or targets in the west. He can’t do that until we leave, though, or he loses face. See again Ralph Peters’s comment and the poll from last year that I linked in the Schumer post for more about AQ’s own strategic difficulties in Iraq. If he’s committed to staying, then a withdrawal is in his best interest not, per Bush’s usual stated reason, because it would give him a safe haven in Anbar — it wouldn’t, at least at first — but because his best shot at winning over the people he’s alienated would be for the Shia to go on the offensive and push the Sunnis into such a tight corner that they’d be grateful for help even from the Wahhabists. That won’t happen so long as the U.S. is there to keep a (loose) lid on the sectarian warfare.

“People of America: the world is following your news in regards to your invasion of Iraq, for people have recently come to know that, after several years of tragedies of this war, the vast majority of you want it stopped. Thus, you elected the Democratic Party for this purpose, but the Democrats haven’t made a move worth mentioning. On the contrary, they continue to agree to the spending of tens of billions to continue the killing and war there.”

The rambling transcript also mentions French President Sakozy, which suggests the tape was made after Sarkozy’s election in May.

According to the transcript, bin Laden says there are two ways to end the war:

“The first is from our side, and it is to continue to escalate the killing and fighting against you.”

The second is to do away with the American democratic system of government. “It has now become clear to you and the entire world the impotence of the democratic system and how it plays with the interests of the peoples and their blood by sacrificing soldiers and populations to achieve the interests of the major corporations.”

Bin Laden goes on to call Noam Chomsky “among one of the most capable of those from your own side,” and mentions global warming and “the Kyoto accord.”

In case you’re not clear on who he’s trying to appeal to, he also denounced, and I quote, “neoconservatives like Cheney, Rumsfeld, and Richard Perle.” Exit question: Why does Osama even know who Richard Perle is?

Update: Needless to say, this isn’t the first “special comment” to come from Al Qaeda.

Update: ABC has added more to the transcript. For the second time today, you’ve got to be kidding:

He also speaks to recent issues grabbing headlines in the United States, referring to “the reeling of many of you under the burden of interest-related debts, insane taxes and real estate mortgages; global warming and its woes…”

No taxes under shari’a either, he promises. Go read Slate’s review of “The Al Qaeda Reader” to see how transparently manufactured Al Qaeda’s message is to appeal to western leftists by invoking their pet causes. Sample quote: “You have destroyed nature with your industrial waste and gases, more than any other country. Despite this, you refuse to sign the Kyoto agreement so that you can secure the profit of your greedy companies and industries.”

Blowback

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Thus, you elected the Democratic Party for this purpose, but the Democrats haven’t made a move worth mentioning. On the contrary, they continue to agree to the spending of tens of billions to continue the killing and war there.

“And that’s why I’m a candidate for the US Congress to replace Nancy Pelosi. I’m Cindy Sheehan, and I approve this message.”

My comments were blocked out (only the quote went through) — meant to say that there is no mention of it at DU and HuffPo either. They are focused on Bush’s “Bad day”, Olby’s coolness, and Gen. Petraeus’ report. It truly is amazing to me that the deadliest terrorist in the world is threatening to harm us again, and the left could care less.

Who said the following comment? OBL or some liberal commentator from the ABC news story?:

“The only thing scarier than another Bin Laden tape are the responding comments from jingoistic right wing nuts who want to do things like start posses. AL Qaeda could never do the damage to the US that the neocons have done to us. In just a few short years we have gone from being the “light on the hill” to being occupiers and torturers – the brave Americans who died for the true meaning of this country must be spinning in their graves.”

Still nothing on Kos. The only thing on HuffPo is a link to an AP article. The DUmmies actually have a diary up, and it’s basically 20 or 30 comments of: “This is BS.” “He’s paid by BushCo to make these videos.” “He makes a video that gets ‘leaked’ to the US and then all the AQ sites go down — It’s a conspiracy!!”

One of them even went so far as to say that OBL is just reiterating the Republican talking points. (Yes, you read that right.) They don’t even attempt to address the fact that OBL sounds just like them on a regular basis. Honestly, I just wonder how some of those people even manage to find their way out of bed in the morning!

Oh, sweet – the Jews would have been SAVED by the Muslims during the Holocaust… But their country? Well, yeah, that needs to be wiped off the face of the Earth.

Editor on September 7, 2007 at 3:40 PM

Yeah, what a tool. The Zionists and Arabs had been at it for decades by the 1940s. The Zionist had bought a lot of land and the Arabs were getting worried. Hitler saw that and made a visit to the Mufti of Jerusalem, who was allegedly the uncle of Yassar Arafat. The Mufti wanted help in exterminating the Jews.

Somebody mentioned that it would be sinful for OBL to shave his beard, but I remember from when the one wacko drove his Jeep onto the UNC campus that somebody said that when Muslims go on missions, they will shave all of their hair in preparation for heaven and the lucky 72. Maybe OBL is planning to do something himself, but I think it’s just as likely that he’s the only Muslim who could get away with shaving. I can’t imagine a terrorist with big enough rocks to tell Osama bin Laden that he can’t shave.

“You permitted Bush to complete his first term, and stranger still, chose him for a second term, which gave him a clear mandate from you — with your full knowledge and consent — to continue to murder our people in Iraq and Afghanistan. Then you claim to be innocent! The innocence of yours is like my innocence of the blood of your sons on the 11th — were I to claim such a thing.”

I find it odd that Bin Hidin’ (who I actually believe has Bin Dead for quite a while now) still talks about Donald Rumsfeld as Sec. of Defense and doesn’t even mention Robert Gates who was nominated (and subsequently confirmed) back in November of 2006. I wonder. Is it just a coincidence that Osama rama ding dong was rumored to be dead around the same time??

I read the entire transcript and there is nothing in there that could not have been recorded earlier. In fact, it appeared to be a rambling piece of propaganda and most of it could have been recorded over a year ago. Since we don’t actually hear Bin Laden’s voice, could the one paragraph that discusses Brown and Sarkozy have been added by someone else? If that were found to be true, would our government be better off telling us about it or keeping it classified? Hmmm….

And…don’t even let me get started on his stupid rant at the end where he claims that Jesus is a “prophet of allah” and Jesus and Mary are mentioned in the “nobel” Quran.

What a propagandist piece of s**t that is!!!

Sorry. It makes me angry when terrorist leaders talk about Jesus as if they had any clue regarding the truth!

I am honored, actually, to be a part of the “neoconservatives” that such filthy terrorists hate.

The more I hear Bin Ladens speeches the more I start to really believe Savage’s assessment that Liberalism truly is a “mental disorder”.

If I was the president I would order a full Congressional vote and if possible a full national vote of the gen pop. The vote would be of two choices. Our only two options to end the attacks in the longterm against the US and her allies from the Radical Islamist.
A) We fight and Win the GWOT totally defeating our enemies whatever it takes whatever the cost.
B) We accept Bin Ladens offer of piece immediately institute Sharia in the Judicial and proclaim Islam as our national religion. Ohh and begin public stoning of all Fags, uncover meat I mean unveiled women, ect……

I have a question for anyone out there who, like me, have seen every zombie flick ever done by the great George A Romero. Is it just me, or anyone else happen to notice that Osama’s complexion here looks just a little too grey to be considered normal? Unless he happens to be normally dead?

Al Qaeda’s message is to appeal to western leftists by invoking their pet causes. Sample quote: “You have destroyed nature with your industrial waste and gases, more than any other country. Despite this, you refuse to sign the Kyoto agreement so that you can secure the profit of your greedy companies and industries.”

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again.

I won’t be the least bit surprised to hear the left start referring to bin Laden as Uncle O ,and chanting:
bin bin
bin laden
al Qaeda is gonna win!

Reading just part of the comments section at the ABC site convinced me that the political conventions of ’08 will make the ’68 conventions look like bingo night in Boca.

It’s become a truism in the intervening decades that America won’t “try to re-fight Viet-Nam in future conflicts.
We had “learned a lesson a a country.”
But you can bet our enemies learned something too.
They know that Viet-Nam wasn’t lost on the battlefields of Ia Drang, Khe Sahn, or Hue.

Authentic? since when do terrorists carry on about global warming? I don’t care what the “experts” say—the real thing is dead(and good riddance). I wish these people would mine their own scurrilous(sp?) business and stay out of ours. I think he’s Geraldo in costume!!!!

A call to convert is obligated by Islam before an attack. This is very grim news. An ominous sign.

doingwhatican on September 7, 2007 at 5:00 PM

Very perceptive

Why do both NBC and ABC carry only a non text version of the document? I had trouble scrolling the PDF document to the page with the demands to convert.

ABC ignores this call to convert to Islam in the article – yet this is one of the two conditions offered by OBL to end the war on terror. The MSM is downplaying this side of the religion of peace again.